大衆|たいしゅうtaishuu[0]heiban (flat)

1. no-adjectivegeneral public; the masses
   その問題もんだいは大衆たいしゅうを当惑とうわくさせた。↗

   The problem puzzled the public.

• Synonym民衆みんしゅうWrittenWritten register: ordinary people as the fabric of society, often set against rulers, as in 「民衆の蜂起」; 「大衆」 leans to the cultural and consumer side.
• Synonym人民じんみんFormalFormal: used mainly in political contexts, often with left-wing overtones; more overtly political than 「大衆」.
• Synonym庶民しょみんNeutralOrdinary commoners, as in 「庶民の味」; carries a friendly, approachable feel and concerns everyday life rather than the masses as a whole.
• Synonym衆人しゅうじんWrittenWritten: simply a crowd of people, as in 「衆人環視」; stresses the many people present rather than the public at large.
• Synonym俗衆ぞくしゅうWrittenWritten: worldly, secular people; carries a dismissive nuance and is rarely used in modern Japanese.
• Synonym衆庶しゅうしょWrittenWritten: the common masses; rare today — in everyday speech use 「大衆」 or 「庶民」 instead.
• Synonym一般大衆いっぱんたいしゅうNeutralOrdinary people with no special status or rank; an emphatic form of 「大衆」, often contrasted with privileged classes or elites.
• Synonym常民じょうみんWrittenWritten: a folklore-studies term for ordinary commoners; examples in actual use are scarce.
• Related国民こくみんNeutralNationals of a country, as in 「国民の義務」; centers on legal citizenship rather than social standing.
• Related人々ひとびとNeutralA plain plural for people, whether as a group or as individuals, with no class nuance; 「大衆」 means the ordinary many set against elites.
• Related世人せじんWrittenWritten: people in society at large; leans toward general opinion, what the world at large thinks.
• Related士庶ししょWrittenWritten: samurai and commoners, or ordinary people as opposed to those of high standing; has a historical flavor.
• Related下々しもじもNeutralThe lower classes, as in 「下々の者」; looks at them from above, with a superior's viewpoint.
• AntonymエリートNeutralLoanword for the elite, the chosen few — the opposite pole to the ordinary 「大衆」.

Use 「大衆」 for the ordinary many, especially in cultural and consumer contexts like 「大衆文化」 and 「大衆食堂」. For the people in political terms choose 「民衆」 or 「人民」; for common folk choose 「庶民」; 「エリート」 is the opposite.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

1. 僧侶そうりょの集団しゅうだん。「摩詞僧伽そうが」の訳わけ。
2. （たいしゅう）多おおくの人々ひとびと。
3. （たいしゅう）社会しゃかいの大半たいはんを占しめる普通ふつうの人々ひとびと。一般いっぱんに通俗的つうぞくてき、低廉ていれん、ひどくは衆愚しゅうぐ的てきのイメージを有ゆうする。